So after replacing control arms, shocks, springs, tie rod, etc (basically everything suspension related) I had my TJ aligned by a 4x4 shop because things were pretty out of wack. They managed to sort out almost all of the issues except for one - the steering doesn’t return to center. When going through a turn, you essentially have to push the wheel back to center manually. There is some tiny bit of help if you’re moving along at a good clip, and it does stay at center while on a straight road, but it doesn’t snap back. I don’t think it’s the steering box as there is a large amount of play in the wheel, which makes me think maybe something is bound up somewhere else. My sample size is all of 1 TJ so maybe this is normal but, figured I’d check in anyways.
Steering not returning to center
- Thread starter Camhabib
- Start date
Chances are your caster is off. After the alignment, did they give you a printout of the alignment specifications?
You could try to adjust this yourself. Shorten the upper control arms to rotate the front axle backwards to increase caster. Do it one degree at a time (use a digital angle finder). You are looking for the most caster you can get without vibrations from the front driveshaft.
Between each change, test drive it at freeway speeds if possible to verify the front driveshaft is not vibrating. At freeway speeds the vibrations will be audible, but not visible (you might notice the mirrors look blurry). The base note is in the bass range on the order of 60 Hz (think of a fluorescent hum). Actual frequency will depend upon speed, gear ratio, and tire size. At freeway speeds, if you can see the individual vibrations but not directly hear the rumble, it is probably tire balance related, and not related to your pinion angle.
On mine I ended up with about 3 degrees between the driveshaft angle and the pinion angle.
You can measure the pinion angle by measuring the machined flat surfaces on the front of the axle. Measure the driveshaft angle on the main driveshaft tube. Anything more than about 3 degrees between the two runs risk of vibrations, but whether or not you get vibrations depends upon a lot of variables, especially gear ratio.
If you pull the upper arms in significantly, you may need to extend the lower arms slightly to re-center the axle.
You could try to adjust this yourself. Shorten the upper control arms to rotate the front axle backwards to increase caster. Do it one degree at a time (use a digital angle finder). You are looking for the most caster you can get without vibrations from the front driveshaft.
Between each change, test drive it at freeway speeds if possible to verify the front driveshaft is not vibrating. At freeway speeds the vibrations will be audible, but not visible (you might notice the mirrors look blurry). The base note is in the bass range on the order of 60 Hz (think of a fluorescent hum). Actual frequency will depend upon speed, gear ratio, and tire size. At freeway speeds, if you can see the individual vibrations but not directly hear the rumble, it is probably tire balance related, and not related to your pinion angle.
On mine I ended up with about 3 degrees between the driveshaft angle and the pinion angle.
You can measure the pinion angle by measuring the machined flat surfaces on the front of the axle. Measure the driveshaft angle on the main driveshaft tube. Anything more than about 3 degrees between the two runs risk of vibrations, but whether or not you get vibrations depends upon a lot of variables, especially gear ratio.
If you pull the upper arms in significantly, you may need to extend the lower arms slightly to re-center the axle.
The alignment came back spot on, caster included. Made sure the print out listed correct values and that they didn’t just do the trick where they change the range to get it “into the green.” Is it possible I need more caster on this rig than what’s standard for this model?
Where is all the free play in the steering wheel coming from? If you replaced all the wear components and the alignment is spot on you shouldn't have free play in the steering wheel.
Is the steering wheel spot on dead nuts centered when you are driving down the road?
What tire pressure are you running? What size tire?
What size rim? What is your backspacing?
All of these can affect how your steering feels to you. Have a buddy turn the steering wheel back and forth while you observe the steering box. Look to see if there is any play in the steering shaft Ujoints, or at the input side of the box. Then look for any slop, play, or delay in the pitman arm, also check for any free movement between the pitman (box output) and the steering wheel (box input). Then switch and have your buddy check these things while you move the steering wheel side to side.
During the alignment were ball joints and wheel bearing checked too?
Is the steering wheel spot on dead nuts centered when you are driving down the road?
What tire pressure are you running? What size tire?
What size rim? What is your backspacing?
All of these can affect how your steering feels to you. Have a buddy turn the steering wheel back and forth while you observe the steering box. Look to see if there is any play in the steering shaft Ujoints, or at the input side of the box. Then look for any slop, play, or delay in the pitman arm, also check for any free movement between the pitman (box output) and the steering wheel (box input). Then switch and have your buddy check these things while you move the steering wheel side to side.
During the alignment were ball joints and wheel bearing checked too?
What was the value for caster?
Does it look like the pinion angle is above or below the driveshaft angle?
What size lift and tires did you go with? What size and backspacing of time do you have? Any wheel spacers?
HuskerJeep
TJ Enthusiast
I've been working through almost the same issue. All new control arms, springs, shocks, etc... and an alignment that shows everything well within spec. I even changed my steering box since it was leaking and there was no change.
A couple other things I checked that turned out ok for me, but might be worth checking for you:
A couple other things I checked that turned out ok for me, but might be worth checking for you:
- I removed my steering stabilizer and took it for a drive. It was new, and I wanted to eliminate that as a possibility - no difference for me.
- It could be your ball joints. I checked mine by putting the front axle up on stands, pulled the tires and unhooked the steering components, then turned the steering knuckles back and forth to feel for any binding. They should turn fairly easily. Mine were fine.